The Ultimate Hall of Fame was established in 2004 to honor the men and women "who by their deeds as ultimate players and/or contributors, and by the example of their lives, merit acknowledgment by all individuals involved in the sport of ultimate."

Although the Ultimate Hall of Fame remains a "virtual" hall for the time being, the long-range goal is to establish a permanent site. In the meantime, the inductees are currently honored with a plaque at the USA Ultimate headquarters building in Colorado Springs, CO. The formal induction ceremony, which is held every five years in conjunction with the ultimate players’ alumni reunion, was last held in 2013, alongside the 2013 USA Ultimate National Championships in Frisco, Texas. The next formal induction ceremony will be held in San Diego in October 2018, in conjunction with a celebration to honor the 50th anniversary of the founding of the sport.

To be inducted into the Ultimate Hall of Fame, potential candidates must complete three steps. The first stage involves "peer voting," where potential candidates are reviewed and ranked by a group of players or contributors from their own playing era. During the current "catch-up" period, the second stage involves winnowing the field down to a slate of twenty candidates through a review of the peer voting results and of written applications solicited by a five person Vetting Subcommittee. The slate of twenty is announced to the community with a request for comment. The final stage involves two rounds of voting for up to ten inductees by the full voting committee, comprised of the Vetting Subcommittee and the Player and Contributor members of the Ultimate Hall of Fame. An inductee must receive an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds majority (66%) of the voters to be selected.